


In the middle of that riot, I couldn't keep you off my mind

by EponineTheStrange (gallifreyandglowclouds)



Category: Doctor Who RPF
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-13
Updated: 2013-07-13
Packaged: 2017-12-19 07:48:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/881278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gallifreyandglowclouds/pseuds/EponineTheStrange
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karen meets Matt's grandfather at a post-DW party, which prompts an unexpected confession from Matt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In the middle of that riot, I couldn't keep you off my mind

There are a flurry of parties to celebrate the end of Karen and Arthur’s tenure on DW – one after they film each episode, which is a lot, a rager in New York that Karen only remembers about sixty percent of, one after the end of the end, and then there’s this oddly family-friendly one, where there are a ton of kids running around that Karen only vaguely recognises. And then, because Matt is Matt and Matt is weird, he brings his grandfather along.

Karen ends up sitting with Matt’s grandfather for a significant bit of the party, because she’s kind of partied out at this point, and while he seems very happy to be in Cardiff and to see what happens on set, this isn’t really his scene, so he’s off in the corner sipping on scotch with Karen, who has had the same martini in her hand for the past hour. They have spent a lot of time talking about the area in and around Inverness, because apparently he used to summer there as a child, and even though it feels like she’s hardly been home in the past six months, talking about it with him brings her back.

“You know,” he says, after spending twenty minutes talking about how his father would make him swim in Loch Ness in September, “Matt talks an awful lot about you.”

“Oh.” She takes a sip of her martini, because she feels that this conversation is about to get kind of weird.

“Well, sometimes his mother will ask,” he says. “But usually, he’ll kind of turn everything in to a story about something silly you and he did.”

“There certainly are a lot of those times.”

“Drives Laura-Jayne crazy!” He laughs. “She keeps telling him, ‘you gotta grab that one, Matt, or someone else will!’ She keeps teasing about your secret love affair.”

“Ah,” Karen says, trying to catch Matt’s eye from across the room. “Now that is both secret and, unfortunately, fictional.”

“Too bad for him,” he replies, “because I think he’d do well to have you. I mean, if you’d have him.”

 _Probably, if he asked,_ Karen thinks, but this is not the time to talk to his grandfather about it.

“And he does a terrible, terrible job at hiding how amazing he thinks you are,” he says, shaking his head. “Because he does think that, Karen, even if he doesn’t tell you. I’d go so far to say the boy’s got a crush. Well more than a crush, if we’re being honest – oh, there he is now!”

Matt has suddenly appeared in front of the table where she and his grandfather are sitting, a big smile on his face. “Well,” he says, “I see you two are getting along!”

“You ought to bring this one home more, Matt!” his grandfather says. “She’s just as lovely as you’ve told us she is!”

Matt’s eyes flick over to meet Karen’s, and there’s just a hint of panic in there, as if his grandfather’s said a bit too much. She’s already blushing like an idiot, so there.

* * *

 

Matt offers to walk Karen home, which she finds a bit hilarious seeing that he’s bundled his own grandfather off in a taxi back to his hotel.

“Your flat’s big enough,” Karen says. “He could have stayed with you!”

“He’s done that already,” Matt says, “and he likes to see places. Plus, when I told him that you and I lived close, he kind of insisted that I walk you home.”

He jams his hands in his jacket pockets and looks down at their feet, striding along in sync, and that’s the last thing they say to each other before they’re suddenly standing in the lobby of Karen’s building.

All the while she’s thinking – if everything that his grandfather said was actually true (and she would not for a moment presume that Mr. Smith was lying to her), then why hasn’t Matt said those things to her? Then again, and she kind of chides herself on being so conventional when she likes to think of herself as a progressive human, she thinks that he’s fantastic, and gushes to her parents about him all the time, and probably has a bit more than a crush on him too, but hasn’t worked up to telling him about it. So, the whole thing’s a bit ridiculous and she’s only really starting to believe that now.

So now they’re in the lobby of her building, and he’s kind of rocking back and forth on his feet like he does when he needs to say something important but can’t.

“I assume Grandpa and you talked about me a fair bit?” He asks.

She nods.

“And what I’ve told him about you? Love the old man, but can’t trust him with anything.”

Karen nods again.

“Kaz,” he says, and he stops rocking and stares straight at her, “do you know how sometimes you have these secrets that you’ve pushed down inside your heart for such a long time, and you can talk to some people about them but not others and everyone thinks you’re being totally ridiculous about it, but you still can’t quite get the words out?”

 _Yeah, mine tend to be about how badly I’d like to push you up against things and kiss you or wake up with my legs tangled in yours for the rest of my life_ , which she doesn’t say but probably should. Her heart’s pounding so loud that it’s almost the only thing she can hear. “Yeah, Matt, I know the feeling.”

“Okay.” He looks down, and then off to the side, and then back at her. “I don’t have a lot of time to say this to you, Kaz, but I think you’re beautiful and fascinating and wonderful and just fucking brilliant in every way.”

“He did tell me you had a crush,” Karen says with a smile.

“More than a crush.”

“Well, that was what I was hoping.”

“Oh.” Matt seems to process this for a while, and then realises what she’s saying, and a smile spreads across his face.

“I’d say I have more than a crush too,” Karen says, “and believe me, it’s probably good you didn’t run in to my mother after a couple of drinks.”

Matt looks both exhilarated and relieved. He steps towards her, curves one arm around her waist, and kisses her on the forehead, which is incredibly sweet and tender and awesome.

“Do you want to come up?” She asks. “Then, you can tell me all the wonderful things you told your grandfather about me.” She punches the button to call the escalator.

“Well,” says Matt, “it wasn’t all that good. I told him that your face was stupid, you couldn’t understand a word she said, and you’re a terrible snog.”

“Oi,” Karen says, leading him in to the elevator, “don’t judge me on my on-camera skills. I’m sure I can prove you wrong on that last one, if you’d like me to.” 


End file.
